All Things All At Once
by kurstythursty
Summary: When Riley Carnahan is torn from her home, and thrown into league with only the most notorious, and dangerous wizard of all time she is left with only two options: Help someone murder ANOTHER of the world's most strongest wizards, or die. Option one isn't looking so good considering she can't stand whom she is supposed to help.


"You love me…don't you Riley?"

"I do, father."

A man stood next to a fire, staring into a nearly empty class of golden colored whiskey with sullen eyes. He was dressed formally as always, with his thinning gray hair combed back onto his head. The words that seeped from his lips were not his own, but they were necessary, and he cursed himself for getting into the situation. He was basically ruining a young girls life, and there was nothing that he could do about it except accept it. After a moment of pursing his lips, he tilted his head and found the only person he cared about in the word. His daughter, 16, and beautiful just like her mother had been, appeared to have wilted away during those horrible summer months. The long blonde hair that had once been so radiant was dull, and apparently un-brushed, but her eyes were what made his heart lurch with regret. They were such a bright shade of blue, but not they were dark, and held nothing but sadness. Sadness that that he had caused.

But it had to be done.

"It's a very easy task, and once it's finished the Dark Lord has given us permission to return home."

Home? Riley almost scoffed at the thought, and blinked her eyes at her father slowly. He was obviously holding onto false hopes and dreams that she could no longer see. Voldemort would not let them just be free to do as they wished, history would show them that. She was prepared for the worst, and had been for quite a long time now. The Carnahan's would never see the beautiful rolling hills of Ireland again as long as they were alive, and he just needed to accept that.  
But she nodded her head, willing to play his game for as long as her Father wanted. He was all she had in the world, and ultimately she wanted him to be happy. He crossed the room, and put her hand on her shoulder, which was really the only amount of affection he had ever been able to muster towards his only child, and stared into her eyes.  
"The train for Hogwarts leaves tomorrow then child. You should get some sleep."

Sleep was often impossible for Riley, and she found herself wandering the halls of their house more than once a night. With her wand clutched in her hand, and her eyes peeled for danger, she would trek the halls until she inevitably grew exhausted, and often fell asleep in random places. It was something that she had always done, and it made her feel better than sitting in an empty room just waiting for morning to roll around. Morning would be a change, and despite the circumstances, Riley was definitely ready for a change. She knew she was gifted, and being ready to go into her sixth year at school, Voldemort saw that as an advantage. Of course, she had never wanted to leave Ireland, but it was the only option they had considering they would have died if not. And her "mission" as her father often called it was a simple one. She was to aid someone with a very important task, and then afterwards they would supposedly be free. Tomorrow morning, her father was going to introduce her to a very important family, with a son the same age as she, and she was supposed to befriend him, and make sure that he accomplished whatever dangerous task that was set upon him. Though, Riley was smarter than he thought, and she knew that this was a lost cause, and this boy was surely going to die this year. It was sad really. Well, not really. Honestly she hadn't heard many good things about him, and his family was in a close relationship with the Death Eaters, and even Voldemort himself, which was something that she didn't particularly approve of.

But her opinion meant nothing, and as bad as she was sure she was going to hate all of them, she had to do what needed to be done.  
Even if it meant help someone kill one of the most powerful wizards of all time.

Despite her circumstances, Riley could only stare in awe at the magnificence that was the Hogwarts Express. Of course she had heard stories from her friends back home, but nothing would compare to the beauty, and wonder of the train that sat before her. Hundreds of children rushed by, eager to board the train, and saying goodbye to their parents until the next summer completely unaware of the dangers that awaited them this school year. Her father grabbed her wrist, pulling her away from her day dreams, and into a harsh reality. Finally she stood in front of the illustrious Malfoy family. The first person that came into view was a woman, with long hair that seemed to be two separate colors of black and white. She sniffed down at her own strawberry blonde, and curiously wondered if this was a thing in England. The woman plastered the fakest smile on her face, and allowed Riley's father to place a kiss upon her outstretched hand. How chivalrous.  
"Mrs. Malfoy. You're looking lovely as ever." Her father said with a smirk on his face. .

"Mr. Carnahan." She nodded her head curtly, her large eyes darting around reverently. "This must be Riley." She sent another fake smile in my direction, and held out her hand for her to shake. Although, Riley stared at it strangely for just a moment, she took it, and shook it softly before returning it to her side.

Her father nudged her side quickly, and Riley gave a bright dazzling smile. "It's a pleasure, Mrs. Malfoy."

Suddenly, all eyes were turned to the much taller being that loomed over the woman's shoulders, and I could see Mrs. Malfoy visibly relax when a hand landed on her shoulder. Riley could only assume this was the youngest Malfoy in which she was supposed to befriend, and couldn't help but realize he didn't look a thing like she expected. While Riley knew she was pale herself, at least she had freckles to cover parts of her skin, but this boy was almost the color of snow itself. His hair was perfect and prim, and a pale blonde just like his mothers, but his eyes weren't dark, they were an interesting shade of gray that Riley couldn't help but stare into.  
He looked lost, and vulnerable.

And this was the boy that Voldemort entrusted such a task with? I nearly scoffed at the thought, but kept my face as grim as those around me.  
Her father cleared his throat softly, and nodded his head. "Riley, this is Draco Malfoy. He's in the same year as you." Riley smirked up at the much taller boy, and held out her hand, locking eyes with his only momentarily. It was obvious what everyone was thinking.

"Nice to meet you Draco Malfoy."

His lips twitched, and she couldn't tell if he wanted to spit on her or return the smile. He decided to keep the same facial expression but nodded his head in acknowledgement. Her father was about to speak again, when an ear splitting whistle interrupted their 'conversation' and the children were being led towards the train.  
"You best get on before all the good seats are taken." Riley's father ruffled her hair affectionately, and gave her one last foreboding look before she was rushed onto the train by everyone else. She looked around for Draco, but he looked too annoyed to be bothered so she rushed through the bustles of people, and finally found a compartment that wasn't too crowded. A girl sat by herself, completely engrossed in a magazine that Riley wasn't familiar with at all, and didn't even look up when the compartment door slid open.

"Erm." Riley opened her mouth to speak, and the girl lowered the magazine. She almost laughed but didn't want to appear too rude when she saw the glasses that covered her eyes. The girl smiled sweetly, and almost dreamily, and folded up the paper to set in her lap.

"Oh, hello." Her voice was wispy, and soft. "Are you new?"

"Aye." Riley smiled brightly, and nodded towards the seat in front of the girl. When she graciously allowed her to sit, she extended her hand. "Name's Riley Carnahan."

"Oh, I'm Luna Lovegood." Her bright blonde hair was nearly the color of the Malfoy's and cascaded in ringlets down her back. She couldn't tell what color her eyes were, because of the large strange glasses that covered her face. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"You too…um…Luna. If you don't mind me asking…what are those-"

Luna pondered the question for a moment, before finally coming to the realization of what Riley was asking, and smiled sweetly. "Oh these…they're just my Spectrespecs."

"Spectrespecs?"

"Yes. They make wrackspurts visible. It appears as though you have quite a few buzzing around your head." She said dreamily, and Riley swatted her hand around her head in confusion.

"Did I get rid of them?"

"Oh they're no harm. They make one's brain go…fuzzy." She smiled. "All you have to do is think happy thoughts, and they go away."

Happy thoughts. Riley mulled this over for a moment, and tried to think of something happy, but feared that would be easier said than done.

"You see…I usually think of the Hogwarts feast. It's perfectly delightful."

"Aye food." Riley rubbed her stomach for a moment. "I do love food."

"Good! I can see them disappearing already." She took them off, and handed them over to Riley. "You want to try?"

Riley could tell that she and this strange girl were going to get along just fine, and although she had never heard of wrackspurts she decided that humoring her would be fun. She grinned as she put the glasses on her head. "Luna you're cheating you're probably already thinking about something happy." Both girls laughed, and Riley handed the spectacles back to her before returning her hands to her lap.

Without warning, the doors to the compartment opened, and a boy stumbled through looking relieved and tired. Even without his trademark scar I could tell just who he was, and automatically grew very serious. He smiled at Luna implying that they were great friends, and sat on the seat next to her, right in front of Riley. Perhaps this was going to be easier than she thought.  
"Harry Potter." Luna smiled softly. "This is Riley Carnahan. She's just transferred."

Harry seemed distant, but smiled for a moment as he shook her hand, and retreated back to himself. She felt odd as though she was keeping them from an apparently necessary reunion. Even though she had a mission she wasn't going to let it change the way she was, and Riley loved making new friends and being around people. Considering she spent her summers all alone with her father who wasn't exactly the greatest company to keep. Wait. Yeah. Ok. She stood up after coming to a resolution within herself, and grabbed her bag before nodding to the two before her.  
"It was lovely meeting you Luna, Harry. I'm gonna go explore this magnificent train before we get to school."

She departed before either had anything else to say to her, and nearly ran into a woman who was pushing a rather large trolley of what looked to be a mountain of sweets. Riley could feel her mouth beginning to salivate as she gazed at the mammoth amount of candy that was definitely just calling her name. After a moment she made eye contact with the woman who was chuckling to herself.  
"Would you like something from the trolley, dear?"

"One of everything please." Now, Riley was not large by any means, and no one could understand how she could eat as much as she did. Even the woman that sold her the treats was shocked as she began shoving everything she could into her bag, and paid her as though it was a normal occurrence. "Thank you." She grinned broadly, and began munching on a piece of chocolate as she swerved around the cart, and towards the rest of the train. It was just like any other school she supposed. There were cliques here, and there, and they were the same as anywhere else. There was a group of pretty girls she passed by, giggling happily, and probably talking about a boy or something. She snorted, and rolled her eyes. Boys were a waste of time. Then there were a group of people playing Wizard's Chess which was something she never really did understand nor see the point of.

"Watch it!" Just in time she managed to duck past a slip of paper that was going far too fast, and searched around for the source. A boy smiled at her sheepishly. "Sorry about that! It got out of hand." He rubbed the back of his head embarrassedly, and Riley merely shook her's.

"No worries. I don't have to sue you just yet."

The boy thankfully continued on his way to find his magical piece of paper, and Riley had to dodge a group of boys that were apparently following after him. She had to admit that Hogwarts seemed like a really happy place despite everything going on, and that was just amazing. The next compartment, however, seemed as though it had a thick cloud overhanging each member, and she was surprised when she recognized one. Draco Malfoy sat in a seat next to a window, staring out at the window soaked plains, and not paying attention to anything that was going on around him. His cheek was pressed into his hand, and those smoking gray eyes were everywhere but on the girl whose head was precariously in his lap. She pressed the door open, and waltzed through, just to see if he would say anything to her.  
"Hello, Draco." She smiled down at him, and his head snapped up at the sound of her voice. At first it seemed as though he didn't recognize her, and she wouldn't have been surprised if he hadn't, but then a sort of hardness gazed over those eyes, and his lips set into a straight line.

"Who is she?!" The girl definitely had the shrillest voice, and Riley frowned at her deeply. She wasn't very pretty, and looked just as gloomy as the rest of them, but completely out of place. Her hair was dark, and long, and her skin was as pale as snow. She gasped when Draco, rather roughly, pushed her off of him, and he slicked his hair back.

"Carnahan." So he did remember her name. Perhaps it was something that had been drilled into his brain over the summer. Her father never ceased to speak of the Malfoy's and exactly how she was supposed to act around them. "Finding the ride…pleasant?" Of course he was trying too hard to make her feel better, and Riley nearly giggled.

"Of course. It's a very beautiful train."

"Malfoy are you going to introduce us to the beautiful lady?" At first Riley really hadn't noticed anyone else in the compartment, was shocked when a rather tall boy stood next to her and beamed down at her. "It's always a pleasure to meet one of Malfoy's acquaintances. I'm Blaise Zambini." The Zambini's were a family that was very well known, mostly as Death Eaters, and Riley smiled at him, although fake and shook his outstretched hand.

"Riley Carnahan."

"A name to go with the pretty face."

Riley frowned for a moment, and looked down at herself. Yes, she knew she wasn't terrible looking before, but in the past she had really let herself go considering the situation. She narrowed her light eyes, and wagged her finger. "Do you flirt with every girl you meet like this?" She asked, not really meaning to.

"Only the pretty ones."

"Enough." Malfoy commanded, obviously growing tired of the talking, and Blaise obediently shut his mouth. He averted those gray eyes back, and met her's for merely a moment. "Are you going to join us?"

Although, Riley could tell she wasn't going to get along with him too well, she figured she would humor him for a moment, and took a seat next to Blaise, right in front of the girl that was just complaining about her presence. If Riley wasn't trying her hardest to act mature she would have definitely stuck her tongue out at the annoying creature, who was currently clinging to Draco for dear life.  
"You could piss on him you know. If you're that intent on marking your territory."

Blaise erupted with laughter, and even Malfoy couldn't contain the smirk from crossing his face. The girl's jaw nearly dropped to the floor in disbelief, and she turned to stare at Draco.  
"Are you just going to let her talk to me like that?"

"Oh, shut it Pansy she's right you know." Blaise interjected before the Malfoy could even speak, taking a break from his laughter. He turned to look at Riley with a smile, and draped his arm over her shoulder. "I think I'm going to like you."


End file.
